THAT KIND OF MOTION WE CALL HEAT - A major societal problem for the 21st century

Abstract: 

Providing a sustainable supply of energy to the world’s population will become a major societal problem for the 21st century as fossil fuel supplies decrease and world demand and environmental concern increases. Thermoelectric phenomena, which involve the conversion between thermal and electrical energy, and provide a method for heating and cooling materials, are expected to play an increasingly important role in meeting the energy challenge of the future. To this end it is important to understand the microscopic mechanism which determines the macroscopic laws of heat transport and allows to control the heat current.